art+Music

"Celebrities have been attempting music careers for a very long time, but they rarely ever make it to the stage as respectable musicians"-Tahlia Torres-COhen

In 2000, when Kobe Bryant appeared on stage with an entourage of dancers trailing behind, the audience was confused, to say the least. Celebrities like him have been attempting music careers for a very long time, but they rarely ever make it to the stage as respectable musicians. Research results in a devastatingly long list of actors, athletes, and reality stars that have made (and published) music. Often times, these short-lived careers fade into the background, never leaving the looming shadow of their main focus. The reason for this trend seems to be a mix of reputation and rejection. Though opinions may vary, a common consensus has formed across the media:Celebrities who suddenly start making music believe their platform will automatically grant them access to the music industry, and to the money that comes with it as well. As mentioned above, basketball star Kobe Bryant had a brief run in the hip-hop industry in 2000, when his album was released by Sony. Expecting his platform to boost his album, he debuted it at the All-Star game as the main performance. However, the music flopped. After essentially failing in the public’s eyes, Sony dropped the album and Kobe, ending his brief musical career.

Most cases go something along the lines of this, beginning with the expectation of success and ending in defeat. When Lindsay Lohan dipped her toe into music, it did well at first. Her debut album, Speak, rose high on the pop charts. Though her music was seemingly accepted in the pop world, it was mostly forgotten in due time. Her career in music was never seen as a blemish on her reputation though, like others. Kim Kardashian released her song Jam (Turn it up) in 2011. Her song was popular (solely because of her audience) for a short amount of time before promptly faded to the background of her career. Kardashian voiced the critics complaints about three years later, saying, “I don’t like it when people kind of dabble into things they shouldn’t be. And I don’t think I should have. Like, what gave me the right to think I could be a singer? Like, I don’t have a good voice."

A routine of rejection is very apparent for actors, athletes, and reality stars who strive for music careers, though there are exceptions. Donald Glover, for instance, is a multi-faceted actor, musician, writer, and comedian who is widely respected in all of his fields of entertainment. If anything, his popularity as both an actor and a musician is only growing and his talent is trusted by pop culture. Perhaps his multifaceted success relates to the fact that he debuted in the film industry and the music industry at around the same time. The world was introduced to both Donald Glover as both an actor and a musician when his audience was fairly small, so they regarded him as simply multi-talented, no questions asked. Another exception to the trend is Jennifer Lopez. Lopez has a bit of a different story than Glover, though with similar characteristics. Her introduction to entertainment started when she was a dancer on the TV show In Living Color, which eventually developed into her acting career. She then released a few songs, which were well-received. Like Glover, Lopez began both of her careers in the same three-year time period. Although she may not be as active as Glover is presently, Lopez is regarded as both a musician and an actress. When success stories like these are compared to ones like Bryant’s or Kardashian’s, the problem seems to appear when the “crossover” occurs, as Glover and Lopez always had mixed careers, in one way or another.

Writer Bridget Minamore addresses the current state of actors who became musicians and visa versa in a recent Pitchfork article. After analyzing the trend and those who have participated in it, Minamore goes on to suppose that, “Perhaps the future of the true actor/musician—someone who acts and releases music as independent endeavors—can be seen as a reflection of a new culture we’re in, where creatives are generally doing more.”

This strays from the common scepticism around actors pursuing music careers. Usually, the public acknowledges the actor’s music as a side project, or alternatively, as a sign of entitlement acquired from having a large audience to profit from. Minamore suggests that as our culture has become more artistic,creative, and even intersectional, and these crossovers are simply a reflection of multimedia creativity.

It is apparent that entertainers will continue branching out into other fields of the industry, though the levels of their success will vary depending on timing and their original career. In the future (like Minamore stated), actor-to-musician crossovers may become more successful than their predecessors. As an artist, I feel obligated to recognize content which is made seemingly only in the interest of gaining more attention from an already large audience, almost showing off one’s ability to do so. Alternatively, art is very fluid concept with a nature that allows literally anyone to create it. The context to each of these crossovers is unique to the artist, which makes the trend hard to criticize. Can we accept TV/internet personalities, actors, athletes, etc. as artists despite the history of flimsy, forgotten music careers?